WASHINGTON, Aug. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced its partnership with The Ricky Martin Foundation to continue raising awareness among English- and Spanish-speaking audiences on the issue of human trafficking. The partnership is the latest development in HHS's Rescue & Restore Victims of Human Trafficking national public awareness campaign.

"Ricky Martin is well known throughout the world and cares deeply about the well-being of children," said Wade F. Horn, Ph.D., HHS assistant secretary for children and families. "Our partnership with Mr. Martin and his passion for combating human trafficking will expand the awareness of this growing problem."

Human trafficking is a modern-day form of slavery, with thousands of victims trafficked annually into the U.S.

"More than half of trafficking victims worldwide are children, forced into pornography, prostitution and labor servitude. Human trafficking is one of the cruelest social problems in the world today," said Martin.
CONTINUE ARTICLE @ NEWSLINK

see now they need to get the ACLU and PETA into the mix. might as well get as many big names into it as possible.
peta can show them the errors of their ways and the aclu can sue them when they fail to change.

Mexican coyotes declare war on the US...1 US immigration agent dead, 1 injured in MexicoFeb 15,`11 -- A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was killed and another wounded while driving through northern Mexico Tuesday, in a rare attack on American officials in this country which is fighting powerful drug cartels.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said one agent was critically wounded in the attack and died from his injuries. The second agent was shot in the arm and leg and remains in stable condition. ICE Director John Morton late Tuesday identified the slain agent as Jaime Zapata, who was on assignment from the office in Laredo, Texas, where he served on the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Unit as well as the Border Enforcement Security Task Force. The injured agent was not identified.

"I'm deeply saddened by the news that earlier today, two U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents assigned to the ICE Attache office in Mexico City were shot in the line of duty while driving between Mexico City and Monterrey by unknown assailants," she said. U.S. and Mexican officials said they were working closely together to investigate the shooting and find those responsible. They did not give a motive for the attack. "Let me be clear: any act of violence against our ICE personnel - or any DHS personnel - is an attack against all those who serve our nation and put their lives at risk for our safety," Napolitano said. "We remain committed in our broader support for Mexico's efforts to combat violence within its borders."

The two agents were driving in the northern state of San Luis Potosi when they were stopped at what may have appeared to be a military checkpoint, said one Mexican official, who could not be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the case. Mexican military officials said they have no checkpoints in the area. After they stopped, someone opened fire on them, the official said. San Luis Potosi police said gunmen attacked two people a blue Suburban on Highway 57 between Mexico City and Monterrey, near the town of Santa Maria Del Rio, at about 2:30 p.m. Police said one person was killed and another was flown to a Mexico City hospital, though they couldn't confirm the victims were the ICE agents. A U.S. law enforcement source who was not authorized to speak on the case said the agent who died was on loan from Laredo, Texas.

Mexican Ambassador to the U.S. Arturo Sarukhan spoke with Morton to express Mexico's condolences, according to a spokesman. "This is a difficult time for ICE and especially for the families and loved ones of our agents. Our hearts and prayers go out to them. This tragedy is a stark reminder of the risks confronted and the sacrifices made by our men and women every day," Morton said in a statement. Zapata, who joined ICE in 2006, had also served as a member of the U.S. Border Patrol in Yuma, Arizona. He was a native of Brownsville, Texas and graduated from the University of Texas at Brownsville in 2005. No age was given for Zapata.

Weren't allowed by Mexico to carry weapons for self-defense...Congressman Says ICE Agents Ambushed by Mexican GangThursday, February 17, 2011 - Members of Mexico's ruthless Zetas gang carried out a highway ambush that killed one U.S. federal agent and wounded another this week, a Texas congressman said Thursday.

Michael McCaul said Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Agent Jaime Zapata, 32, was killed by members of the Zeta cartel after a group of 10 to 15 armed men in two vehicles forced Zapata's Chevy Suburban off a highway in San Luis Potosi on Tuesday afternoon. ICE Agent Victor Avila was shot twice in the leg. McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, said the agents identified themselves as U.S. diplomats before being shot. "This was a complete ambush," he said, adding that investigators recovered least 90 bullet casings from the scene.

The Texas Republican said Zapata and Avila identified themselves as U.S. diplomats "hoping they (the Zetas) would honor the long-standing tradition that they don't (target) U.S. law enforcement." "This is a complete game changer," he said. "They are changing the rules." He said while the motive for the attack remains unclear, one thing is certain: "There's no case of mistaken identity."

Authorities have said the agents were likely in the wrong place at the wrong time and that their SUV is of a kind coveted by drug cartels in the area. Mexican authorities are investigating the shooting but have not announced any arrests. "My sense is that we know, we probably have pretty good intelligence as to who was behind this," McCaul said. "That's what it appears to be."

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder have formed a joint task force led by the FBI to help Mexico find the killers. Holder said Thursday that U.S. officials would look closely at the security situation in Mexico and make any changes warranted to ensure that U.S. personnel "have maximum protection." The Mexican government does not allow U.S. law enforcement personnel to carry weapons. Holder would not say if the government planned to push to allow U.S. law enforcement working in Mexico to arm themselves.

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